Us Airways Seeks To Ditch Union Deals

Briefcase - News of note

August 27, 2002

US Airways Group Inc. has asked the court presiding over its Chapter 11 bankruptcy case for permission to reject collective bargaining agreements that cover more than 18,500 employees. The agreements are with mechanics and other employees represented by the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers and with reservation and counter workers represented by the Communications Workers of America, according to court papers obtained Monday by Dow Jones Newswires. Unlike other employee groups, these groups have not ratified cost-reduction agreements being sought by US Airways. A hearing is set for Sept. 10 in Alexandria, Va. US Airways is the No. 4 carrier at Orlando International Airport.

LOCAL

DISNEY SHIP REPORTS MEASLES

The Disney Cruise Line has sent almost 15,000 letters to customers alerting them that a crew member came down with German measles during a cruise on its ship Wonder earlier this month. The letters were sent to customers who had sailed in the two weeks before the Aug. 4-8 cruise and customers who were planning to sail in the month after the cruise, spokesman Mark Jaronski said Monday. Most U.S. residents are inoculated for German measles, or rubella. No new cases of the illness have been reported by guests or crew members, Jaronski said.

STATE

BELLSOUTH RATES UNDER FIRE

The staff of the Florida Public Service Commission on Monday recommended lowering many of the current rates that BellSouth Corp. has been given approval to charge competitors to lease parts of its network. BellSouth had requested increases in the rates it charges for many of the hundreds of pieces of unbundled network elements that it leases to its competitors, such as the fiber strands or copper wire that runs between BellSouth's central office and residences. At the same time, the proposed lower rates were considerably higher than those suggested by competitors AT&T Corp. and MCI in recent filings. According to Richard Tudor, a spokesman for the PSC, BellSouth and its competitors are free to negotiate rates other than those approved, but when they are unable to agree, the approved rates become the "default rates."

ST. JOE SELLS OFF RAILROAD

The St. Joe Co. said Monday that it has agreed to sell the locomotives and freight cars of its Apalachicola Northern Railroad to AN Railway LLC, a subsidiary of Rail Management Corp. The Apalachicola Northern provides freight service between Port St. Joe and Chattahoochee. Rail Management, which is based in Panama City, operates 13 shortline railroads, including the Bay Line between Panama City and Dothan, Ala. St. Joe, which is based in Jacksonville, will retain ownership of the Apalachicola Northern's right-of-way, track, facilities and real estate, leasing track and related facilities to AN Railway. The sale is subject to regulatory approval.

NATION

ENRON CREDITORS GO AFTER MONEY

Enron Corp.'s creditors on Monday filed a complaint against Michael J. Kopper, the former company financial executive who pleaded guilty to criminal charges last week, seeking to seize the $12 million in illicit profits he had agreed to hand over. The complaint was filed with the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Manhattan. Judge Arthur Gonzalez granted such actions by the creditors, who lost as much as $50 billion in Enron's collapse.

SHORT-TERM T-BILL RATES MIXED

Interest rates on short-term Treasury securities were mixed in Monday's auction. The Treasury Department sold $15 billion in three-month bills at a discount rate of 1.630 percent, unchanged from the previous week. An additional $14 billion was sold in six-month bills at a rate of 1.635 percent, up from 1.630 percent.

NYSE CHAIRMAN TO DISCLOSE STOCK

Richard A. Grasso, the chairman of the New York Stock Exchange and a leading official in setting the tone for corporate America, failed to properly disclose his ownership of deferred stock as a board member of Computer Associates International for five years. The stock ownership was disclosed annually in the company's proxy statements, the company said. But on review of the compensation plan this year and on the advice of outside legal counsel, the company said it changed its position with respect to the need for directors to file a disclosure.

LATIN AMERICA

BRAZIL GETS BREAK FROM BANKS

Sixteen major international banks agreed Monday to maintain current credit lines for Brazil, a move the country's central bank president called an important step toward reviving South America's largest economy. "This was our goal," bank President Arminio Fraga said after meeting with executives from banks ranging from Citigroup Inc. to Germany's Deutsche Bank AG.